


The Smallest Request

by AliJ7Eternal



Category: The Devil Wears Prada (2006)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-13
Updated: 2017-06-13
Packaged: 2018-11-13 12:45:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,906
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11185404
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AliJ7Eternal/pseuds/AliJ7Eternal
Summary: An innocuous task has strange effects on Miranda Priestly and Andrea Sachs.Originally posted July 4th, 2011, on my soon to be defunct site j7eternal.tripod.com/





	The Smallest Request

“Emily?” Miranda’s quietly commanding voice shattered Andrea’s train of thought. Knowing that Miranda was calling for Andrea, the second assistant, whose name she hadn't bothered to learn, her first assistant Emily did not stir. She didn't bother with her usual withering look either. Andrea had been at Runway long enough to snap to attention the moment their imperious boss spoke. The lovely red-head studiously ignored Andy as she rushed passed to do Miranda's bidding.

Expecting a stream of instructions, Andy had pen and pad ready reaching Miranda’s desk a moment later. Miranda was leaning closer than usual to her laptop, squinting a little, her lips pursed with impatience; she held her hand up towards her second Emily. Confused for a moment Andy was about to speak then she noticed that Miranda’s glasses were grasped ever so lightly in her elegant fingertips.

“Smudged.” She said quietly. Andy’s brain kicked in. Miranda wanted her to clean her glasses. She gingerly retrieved the undoubtedly expensive eyewear from Miranda’s grasp. She was at a loss; she glanced around Miranda’s desk looking for a case that might contain a lint-free cloth or a tiny spray-bottle of lens cleaner. Nothing presented itself.

“Please do take your time, Andrea, is even the smallest request beyond your” – Miranda stopped talking. She had glanced up to skewer the girl with a look but instead felt the strangest shiver arc through her at the sight of Andrea Sacks. Her mouth a soft ‘O’ and her eyes nearly closed as she cast her breath onto one lens of Miranda’s glasses. She quickly wiped it with her Donna Karan crepe shirtdress and repeated the process with the other lens.

Andy carefully handed the glasses back to Miranda, who was looking at her strangely, her head making the subtlest side to side move, and her mouth – no longer pursed – but slightly open. It was a look of surprise that lasted only a fraction of a second. Andy smiled expectantly waiting for further instructions.

“That’s all.” Miranda said, more quietly than usual. Andy quickly returned to her desk catching a glimpse of Miranda staring after her. She paused wondering if there had been something else, but Miranda turned her attention back to her laptop and quickly donned her glasses. Relieved, Andy sat down and continued with the email she had been composing, trying to ignore the warm sensation in her abdomen brought on by Miranda’s stare.

When she had started working at Runway she often felt flushed with embarrassment, or anger, at Miranda’s scathing pronouncements of her ineptitude. But now that Andy understood that Miranda treated most people like poorly educated cretins she no longer took it personally and had noticed that the more confident she felt the fewer barbs Miranda fired at her. She had also noticed that since she had broken up with Nate her thoughts were even more occupied with Miranda and not always in an appropriate professional way.  Her warm buzz disappeared before she had to run out for Miranda’s steak lunch.

The rest of the day passed as quickly as usual. She waited until almost ten for the Book and rushed to the townhouse to deliver it. She quietly crept into Miranda’s beautiful home, placed the Book on the credenza and was turning to leave when Miranda’s distinct “An-drey-ah” came from the den. Andy scooped up the Book and was handing it to her boss a few quick steps later. Miranda looked more relaxed than she ever did in the office; Andy noted that she even had her feet up on a plush ottoman. After she delivered the book Andy was expected to leave, quickly and quietly. Tonight, however, Miranda removed her glasses and gave her second assistant a long measuring look. Andrea unconsciously straightened her shoulders hoping Miranda approved of her growing aptitude for fashion. She felt the warmth of her attraction begin to stir again as she watched Miranda’s eyes slowly make their way up her body. When their eyes met Miranda did not glance dismissively away as usual, instead she held Andy’s gaze for several silent moments.

Feeling nervous and flustered Andy looked away and fought the nervous smile that was beginning to curve her lips; was Miranda admiring the dress or her body? coming from anyone else Andy would assume she had just been 'checked out'- surely that was just her own wishful thinking. Miranda took off her glasses and offered them to Andy as she had that morning. More likely Miranda hadn't even noticed that there was someone in the dress. Andy automatically stepped closer to do her bidding. She lifted the slouched pocket of her shirtdress in preparation and noticed that Miranda’s eyes darted in the direction of her now exposed calf. She took a deep breath and blew onto the lens before wiping it thoroughly with the expensive linen of her dress. As she repeated the same steps with the left lens, she kept her eyes open and saw that Miranda’s eyes were on her chest, and that her brows had relaxed. In fact, Miranda’s entire face looked relaxed and content. 

Andy handed her the glasses and watched the same look of surprise or astonishment bloom on Miranda’s face. They stared at each other for a few long moments; Miranda played one arm of her eyewear over her bottom lip then she blinked and looked down to the book on her lap. “That’s all. . . Andrea.” She said. Andy grinned as she hurried passed the stairs. She felt exhilarated for the entire subway ride home. She didn't know what Miranda thought of her but she certainly enjoyed thinking about Miranda: her hands, her lips, the way her hair must feel, the way her skin would feel pressed up against her own.

 

*

 

“Andrea.” It was just after the first morning meeting when Miranda called for her. Emily’s head snapped up and her eyes flashed wide with dismay because Miranda had use Andrea's name. All the previous second assistants that Emily had tried to train, had failed to make a positive impression. Emily looked at the inept brunette with new respect.

Andy didn’t have time to worry about Emily; she rushed to Miranda’s desk, pen at the ready. Once again her boss was holding out her glasses, a different pair than she had worn the day before. Andy tucked her pen and pad under one arm and proceeded to clear the smudges from Miranda’s lens.

Again she was greeted with the open-mouthed look from Miranda; her eye’s seemed to sparkle. Briefly Andy wondered if this was just a bit of entertainment for her enigmatic boss, perhaps a task so small as to insult her? Or a challenge to her previous superior attitude. She was quite enjoying having all of Miranda's attention so she didn’t really care what her motivations were. Miranda bit her lower lip ever so slightly as she looked up, then she held Andy’s gaze for a moment or two before dismissing her with a ‘that’s all.’ The longer Miranda held her gaze the easier it was for Andy to convince herself that the attraction was mutual; that Miranda enjoyed looking at her.

Later that evening at the townhouse, Andy wasn’t as quiet as she ought to be, Miranda called out to her as she was closing the front door. Andy happily walked into the den to find Miranda in precisely the same position as the night before. As she handed over the Book. Miranda offered up her glasses. Andy smirked just a little as she accepted the fragile looking eyewear. This time she drew the process out, making sure she breathed on the outer and then the inner surface of each lens; taking her eyes from Miranda’s only long enough to check her work. Remarkably Miranda did not complain at the delay, instead she looked quite content to watch Andrea as she took her deep breaths and puckered her lips just so.  

Once she had placed the eyewear carefully back into Miranda’s hand she lingered in her personal space and watched what might have been a look of delight, gradually fade from Miranda’s eyes. She certainly felt delighted staring into the blue of Miranda’s eyes. She wondered what on earth was happening between them but did nothing to find out -- least the spell be tragically broken. Hope and desire burned inside her. Andy took a step back and waited for the quiet ‘that’s all.’

 That night at home alone, Andy closed her eyes and remembered Miranda looking at her, not admiring the couture, not an approving glance at scarf or boots, but actually looking at her. At the least she had seen pleasure in Miranda's eyes, that was certain, and she hoped it would soon be followed by desire. Whether it was professional or not Andy’s thoughts led her to some delights all her own.

Andy and Miranda fell into a sort of pattern of sharing this indulgence, this ‘folie à deux’, once before lunch and then again when Andy delivered the Book. In the morning it was a break from the hectic routine, a small pool of contentment they could visit and be refreshed. In the evening, surrounded by silence and without fear of interruption, it grew beyond contentment and delight to something much more complex and intimate. Andy lingered longer at Miranda’s side; Miranda took longer to dismiss her.

 

 *

 

Andy, as usual, arrived just in time to place Miranda’s scalding hot Starbucks on her desk and lay out Miranda’s reading before the editor of Runway made her entrance. It had been about two weeks of indulgence and these small tasks that she had once found annoying or even demeaning were now carried out with a smile of contentment. She knew what Miranda needed and was quite capable of providing it. She hustled back to her desk to receive Miranda’s coat and bag.

Instead of throwing them at her as she strode quickly passed, Miranda paused long enough to look into Andrea’s eyes as she removed her coat whilst delivering her rapid list of requirements. Emily seemed oblivious to the look that passed between Andrea and their boss as she murmured ‘yes, yes, of course, done’ to each command even though Miranda was not listening.

As Andy hung up the soft coat and stowed the sleek leather bag next to it, she heard Miranda’s voice halt mid-thought. She turned around to see Emily’s back straighten and then watched her quickly retreat.

“An-Drey-A!” Miranda Priestly did not yell. Miranda never needed to yell. She didn’t even raise her voice; the most she would ever do was emphasize. The cloud of contentment that Andy had been living in for two weeks disappeared. Not letting her fear show she raced across the white carpet to Miranda’s office.

Miranda stood behind her desk looking infuriated, with her arms crossed over her chest. She glared at Andy who was opening her mouth to speak but wisely shut it. She followed Miranda’s icy glare. Between them on the desk, nearer to Andy than to Miranda, stood a small bottle of reflective lens cleaner on top of a clear plastic sleeve of perhaps two inches by three which enclosed a ‘Zeiss’ lens-cloth. Andy was horrified.

“Miranda,” Andy began.

“If my smallest request is such a burden,” Miranda interrupted, but Andy could not bear to hear the end of that sentence so she broke the cardinal rule of Runway, she spoke over Miranda.

“It wasn’t me, Miranda,” She managed, her eyes wide with emotion and tears tightening her throat. Miranda stopped and glanced back down at the offending items. “Never.”  The word escaped Andy’s lips in a whisper. Her eyes met Miranda’s.

“This was not your idea?” Miranda clarified. Andy shook her head vigorously and tried hard to breath. “Don’t hurt yourself, Andrea.” Her emphasis evaporated but the ice hadn’t completely left her eyes. “Emily!” Miranda emphasized.

 A moment later her eager first assistant appeared with a small expectant smile which quickly disappeared. Miranda leaned forward and picked up the bottle and the cloth, using just her fingertips, elbow straight as though holding something rank, she pivoted her arm to the side and dropped the two bits of offal into her stylish waste bin. She glared at Emily and said, “That’s all.”

“I’m sorry Mir-"

“Please bore someone else with your self –flagellation - move my meeting with accounts to this afternoon, contact Lauquen – we’ll have to shoot it in studio – Tell Stella yes” Miranda sat gracefully behind her desk eyeing her laptop screen.    “– and where is Nigel?”

“Here!” Nigel said walking in. Miranda spoke to him as if her assistants were not present and soon enough they weren’t. Seated at their desks, Andy glanced up from her computer screen to see Emily staring angrily into space. When Emily noticed her, she turned her glare on Andy, and then returned her attention to her own computer. Andy tried not to grin, she dipped her head and pursed her lips, she probably looked like she was swallowing a burp, but she didn’t care. Emily thought she knew what Miranda wanted, but she was wrong.

The morning passed in a flurry of activity. Andy was rushed off her Laboutin’s and could have used a moment of indulgence, but it didn’t happen. All afternoon Miranda went from meeting to meeting keeping both of her assistants on edge. That evening Andy was relieved to simply sit at her desk and wait for the Book.

She could have checked her personal email, but she knew there was no point. Her friends had busy lives and she hadn’t bothered to text anyone outside of work for more than a week. Her ‘private life’ no longer existed. Nigel would say that was a sure sign of a promotion on her horizon. She shook her head. Right at this moment she didn’t want a promotion. She didn’t want anything to disrupt those cool and quiet moments when she was lost in the blue of Miranda’s eyes. She put her head on her desk and groaned quietly; Nate was right. The person whose calls she always took was now her only relationship.

The Book was placed lightly on her desk and she looked up with relief. It had been a very long day. She got to the townhouse as quickly as she could. The house was deathly silent, her footfalls sounded too loud in the foyer; she tip-toed to the hall, moving by memory as all the lights were out. There was one lamp still on in the den but no call from Miranda, she held the Book to her chest and sighed, no indulgences tonight then. Disappointed she set the Book down and turned to tip toe out.

“Andrea?” Miranda’s voice cracked a little. Andy felt suddenly that she wasn’t tired at all as she made her way towards the single light.

“Sorry to be so late, Miranda.” She said.

“Never apologize for things outside your control, Andrea.” Miranda shifted to sit up straighter and put her hand out for the Book. Andy waited as Miranda flipped through the first few pages, growing ever more anxious that the moment she had waited for all day was not going to come, perhaps never would come again. Andy took a step towards the door and Miranda glanced up at her over the tops of her reading glasses.

 Then, without taking her glasses off she reached up and Andy stepped closer so she could link her fingers with Miranda’s. Desire spread through her, she feared she might faint with exhilaration.

Miranda’s soft, strong and elegant fingers toyed with hers, slid over her warm palm and teased the edge of her wrist. She pulled Andy’s hand to her cheek and the tingling that had started when Miranda first touched her intensified as it swirled goose-bumps up her arm and kick-started a throbbing ache between her thighs.

She closed her eyes to enjoy the sensation and when she opened them she looked down to see that Miranda had set aside the Book and her glasses sat on top of it. Andy crouched down to look her straight in the eyes. What she found there was contentment laced with something else. She maneuvered her hand to clasp Miranda’s and brought it close to her mouth but instead of kissing it she pushed her lips into an ‘O’ and blew her hot breath over Miranda’s knuckles. Though her body was relaxed, the look in Miranda’s eyes intensified. She pulled Andy’s hand to her mouth and gently placed delicate kisses over each of her knuckles, closing her eyes as she did so.

Andy sucked her breath in and steadied herself by grabbing onto the back of Miranda’s chair. When Miranda opened her eyes she found that Andrea had leaned in close and she could once again feel her breath on her skin. She bit her bottom lip to keep from kissing her second assistant.

“I’m sorry, Andrea, I don’t know what we’re doing?” Miranda whispered, genuinely perplexed. Andy smiled a little and pressed their palms closer together.

“What was it you just said about things outside of your control?” She asked. Miranda’s eyes widened as Andy leaned closer, seemingly to kiss the back of Miranda’s hand, except at the last moment she moved it out of the way and pressed her lips firmly against Miranda’s.

Their clasped hands held tighter as their lips connected, then slid briefly apart before connecting yet again.


End file.
